I Will Survive

1. I Will Survive Lord of the Flies The Hunger Games

2. For our first novel unit, you will have the chance to choose to read Lord of the Flies or The Hunger Games. Activities for both books will be similar, so the quality of the instruction and the interest level of the work will be comparable. I want each student to have a text that is accessible to them, so when we explore characterization, plot, themes, and symbols, everyone benefits because they have read the text appropriate for their skill level.

3. A Quick Overview ofThe Hunger Games (thanks, Amazon.com) In a not-too-distant future, the United States of America has collapsed, weakened by drought, fire, famine, and war, to be replaced by Panem, a country divided into the Capitol and 12 districts. Each year, two young representatives from each district are selected by lottery to participate in The Hunger Games. Part entertainment, part brutal intimidation of the subjugated districts, the televised games are broadcasted throughout Panem as the 24 participants are forced to eliminate their competitors, literally, with all citizens required to watch.

4. A Quick Overview ofLord of the Flies(thanks Wikisource and me) In the midst of a war, a group of schoolboys becomes abandoned on an island when their plane goes down. The boys elect a leader and establish a society governed by rules while trying to be rescued from the island. Conflict begins to develop when the boys drift from their responsibilities and when factions begin to form over who should be in charge.

6. How do I know which book to choose?

7. A Sneak Peek: The boy with fair hair lowered himself down the last few feet of rock and began to pick his way back toward the lagoon. Though he had taken off his school sweater and trailed it now from one hand, his grey shirt stuck to him and his hair was plastered to his forehead. All round him the long scar smashed into the jungle was a bath of heat. He was clambering heavily among the creepers and broken trunks when a bird, a vision of red and yellow, flashed upwards with a witch-like cry; and this cry was echoed by another.

8. My other Option?

9. A Sneak Peek: When I wake up, the other side of the bed is cold. My fingers stretch out, seeking Prim’s warmth but finding only the rough canvas cover of the mattress. She must have had bad dreams and climbed in with our mother. Of course, she did. This is the day of the reaping. I prop myself up on one elbow. There’s enough light in the bedroom to see them. My little sister, Prim, curled up on her side, cocooned in my mother’s body, their cheeks pressed together. In sleep, my mother looks younger, still worn but not so beaten-down. Prim’s face is as fresh as a raindrop, as lovely as the primrose for which she was named. My mother was very beautiful once, too. Or so they tell me.